Jim Benton, Author . S&S $14.95 (102p) ISBN 978-0-689-86291-5
The Franny K. Stein, Mad Scientist series gets off to a silly start with this copiously and cartoonishly illustrated novel, which bears at least a passing visual resemblance to Dav Pilkey's Captain Underpants capers. The young heroine is clearly
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Jim Benton, Author Scholastic $7.99 (0p) ISBN 978-0-439-69345-5
Fans of the licensed character, Happy Bunny, here making its book debut, will welcome the irreverent It's Happy Bunny Love Bites by Jim Benton. The long-eared fellow offers such advice as ""Show that cutey-patootey your smart and sensitive side""...
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Jim Benton. Scholastic Press, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-545-17731-3
A periwinkle-blue blob of a bear named Donut demands a story, while an offstage speaker encourages him to be on his way. "Once there was a bear named Donut. And he burped. The end," the unmotivated storyteller says in typewriter-style print on a...
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Jim Benton. NBM (www.nbmpublishing.com), $13.99 trade paper (96p) ISBN 978-1-56163-846-8
Though the title makes some very specific promises about the content, there are also lots of gags about death, particularly murder, and breasts. The former points to a pleasing dark edge that runs through Benton’s cartoons and gives them some heft,...
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Jim Benton. Scholastic/Cartwheel, $7.99 (18p) ISBN 978-0-545-64789-2
With galloping rhymes, a goofball sense of humor, and equally loopy cartooning, Benton takes readers on a hunt for dinosaurs within the pages of the book. Most are right out in the open. “Could they be living way out west/ in cowboy boots and fancy...
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Jim Benton. Scholastic Press, $12.99 (240p) ISBN 978-0-545-94240-9
In this kooky neighborhood caper from Benton (the Franny K. Stein series), three friends discover the manual parents use to maintain control of their kids. Twelve-year-old Jack is tired of his parents bossing him around, and his friend Mike and...
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Jim Benton, Author, Jim Benton, Illustrator . Scholastic/Apple $4.99 (129p) ISBN 978-0-439-62904-1
Benton's Dear Dumb Diary series gets off to a shaky start with this trite tale told in diary format. In daily entries, each starting with the title salutation, Jamie Kelly vents repeatedly on several topics. A die-cut cover shows the heroine,...
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Jim Benton, Author, James K. Benton, Author, Jim Benton, Illustrator Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing $15.99 (112p) ISBN 978-0-689-86292-2
Attack of the 50-ft. Cupid picks up where Lunch Walks Among Us left off in the Franny K. Stein, Mad Scientist, series by Jim Benton. In this installment, Franny gets a lab assistant courtesy of her mother. Franny also learns about giving ...
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Jim Benton. Two Lions, $17.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-5420-4347-2
A calamity-prone, wildly expressive Comet saves Christmas in this holiday romp, driven by Benton’s vibrant ink and watercolor cartoons. When the reindeer is hurt breaking up a squabble between two overtired elves, the doctor gives him some unwelcome
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Jim Benton. Papercutz, $17.99 hardcover (96p) ISBN 978-1-5458-2355-2
On a quest to prove he’s one bad dude, a young bear forsakes his forest home for the streets of the city in this madcap graphic novel by Benton (the Catwad series). Clyde yearns to be “bad as bologna. Left out on the counter to spoil.” When scaring...
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Jim Benton. Graphix, $8.99 paper (128p) ISBN 978-1-338-32602-4
This playful collection of graphic-format short stories follows the adventures of two dissimilar cats—grumpy and cynical Catwad and happy-go-lucky Blurmp—who also happen to be best friends. From mistaking mosquitos for fairy unicorns to naming a...
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Jim Benton. Papercutz, $14.99 (112p) ISBN 978-1-5458-0499-5
Bill Waddler has it tough, trying to live daily life amid ultra-communicative man-made objects. Not only do they heckle him with demoralizing insults but the autonomous, frequently gendered objects continually engage during the most basic tasks:...
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